


Sitting Together, Simply Observing

by aliceinsunnydale



Category: Angel: the Series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-10
Updated: 2016-05-10
Packaged: 2018-06-07 16:47:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6814063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aliceinsunnydale/pseuds/aliceinsunnydale
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Darla and Spike at a meeting of The Order. Inspired by a headcanon from chippcd on tumblr:</p><p>"More often than not, when in court, Darla and Spike could be found sitting together, simply observing."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sitting Together, Simply Observing

The Master’s court, The Order of Aurelius, was a vast and complex organism. It was a system of moving parts that had been forged over millennia. A lot of it was larger than this dimension allowed it to be but this is where it was tethered. The Master himself was only really a small part of the overall structure, a minute point in a timeline that stretched for eternities.

His childe, Darla, was even smaller than that. She had a few brief and confusing mentions in some ancient texts and prophecies, but who didn’t? In the grand scheme of things, The Master, Darla, her ragtag family of four, they were all already specks of dust.

 _But you wouldn’t bloody think it by the way that Angelus grandstands_.

Every time he was dragged to these events Spike was forced to sit through the same speech about how unimportant they all where when they considered the importance of the mission. He was then forced to watch as nearly everyone in attendance promptly forgot the touching prologue and began the business of fawning over each other’s supposed accomplishments.

He watched with disdain as a crowd formed around Angelus. The tall, broad vampire stood a head above his gathered admirers and Spike watched him grin widely as they all vied to shake his hand or give him a strong pat on the back. No one approached Spike.

In fact, he believed that no one else in the dank and musty underground cavern that The Master called home, was even aware that he was there. He was wrong. From a seat to the left hand of The Master’s imposing throne two bright green eyes watched Spike curiously. He wasn’t the only one they were watching but he was the only one that elicited a sense of wonder.

When Darla looked at Angelus she understood the tableau. He was magnificent, he was prideful, and after being physically humiliated here all those years ago he was still trying to prove something. Darla even understood the scene when she looked towards Drusilla, though it grated at her in a way that looking at Angelus never had.

Drusilla was powerful in her own right. She was a seer with visions of the future and the ability to worm her way inside one’s mind through the eyes. Though it often seemed like the frail dark haired vampire needed a hand to hold just to keep her walking straight, she had abilities that awed and engrossed a small crowd. Said crowd now gathered around her as she hummed and swayed and grinned wickedly.

Darla and Spike were the only two members left seated at the large stone table. Once again Darla’s eyes found their way across the pile of ancient texts that lay on top of the table and rested on the other blond vampire. As she arose from her seat no one else in the room even glanced her way.

 _Typical_. She thought. _You abandon your family just **one**_ _time and they never forgive it._

She strode unnoticed over to the further end of the table where Spike was still staring intently at Angelus. He only looked up when Darla was practically above him. He sucked in his cheeks and placed his palms on the table in front of him, readying himself to stand. He wasn’t sure what he had done wrong – he had tried to sit as silent and still as possible through the whole boring ordeal – but if Darla was approaching him so directly he was surely about to be punished.

He made as if to stand but before he could rise barely an inch above his seat one of Darla’s deceptively small hands rested on his, holding him in place. The touch was strong but soft all at once, and he looked up once again at the older vampire. He could have sworn he saw the faint beginnings of a sympathetic smile on her lips but he chalked it up to the dim lighting of the underground.

Darla removed her hand from Spike’s and wordlessly sat down in the seat next to him. She was thankful that he didn’t speak, that he didn’t try to make any snide comment that would cause her to regret changing seats. Instead they both sat, shoulder to shoulder, in silence as they watched the evening unfurl around them.

Vampires milled about from group to group sharing stories. Some were of travels around the known world, filled with gleeful violence. Others were of the unknown world and voracious battles with unidentified demons. The overall mood of the family reunion was light. Except for the small storm cloud that brewed above the two seated vampire’s heads.

Though he would rather die again, for real this time, than admit it aloud, Darla’s presence beside him calmed Spike. He was still unhappy about having to come in the first place but, strangely, knowing that the person who forced him to attend was just as unhappy made him feel a little better.

The hours passed by slowly and still neither Darla nor Spike spoke a word. They watched as Angelus regaled his fans with stories of fights he had won. They shot each other small glances each time he added one or two more victims to his body count than there really had been. They watched too as Drusilla glowed and preached her logical nonsense to her congregation. They shot each other small glances each time she told one of her parishioners a bleak fate that the poor recipient couldn’t quite understand.

The evening wore on and the two bodies next to each other began to slack, becoming ever more comfortable with the faint tingle that passed through the centimeters of space between them. At one point, as Angelus recalled a story that painted Spike as a victim, the character in question thought he felt his companion’s foot gently brush against his leg. When he looked at her, however, she had turned to talk quietly with an older vampire who had sat at her other side.

The one and only intruder into their little world of quiet comfort eventually left and Darla turned her attention back to her surroundings. People had begun to quietly take their leave and even the bustle around Angelus had thinned out. The vampire stifled a small yawn with her hand and from the corner of her eye she saw Spike’s slight but amused smile.

Eventually there were only a handful of vampires left in the chamber. A couple stayed near Angelus who, if he had noticed the dramatic loss of audience members, did not allow it to impact his enthusiastic storytelling. Another vampire swayed in front of Drusilla, following the trance of her fingertips and a tune that only the two of them could hear.

When Darla realized that even The Master had taken his leave she let a small stream of breath leave her parted lips. Her shoulders slumped a little and her head tilted to rest itself quite comfortably against Spike. Spike nearly jumped at the contact as if the electric air between them had actually shocked him. He managed to maintain control, however, and he simply tilted his head to blink slowly at the woman he thought he knew.

The tilt of his chin so his eyes could meet hers meant that his lips ghosted gently over the golden curls of her hair and his nose took in her sweet scent. This time he was sure that she smiled but she still said nothing as her heavy eyelids closed. He kept watching her for a moment longer, half expecting there to be some trick. When nothing came he looked back up in front of him, and for the only time in his entire life he wished that Angelus would never stop showing off.


End file.
